The Catbird Speaks 6.12.15 - So this was a pretty lame draft?
/Mauricio Rubio from Baseball Prospectus joins James to talk prospects, specifically what few the Sox brought into their organization during the 2015 Draft.
Read MoreWhite Sox Day 2 Draft Musings
/After grabbing Vanderbilt RHP Carson Fulmer at No. 8 in Monday's first round, the White Sox had to wait all the way until No. 112 to make their next pick, thanks to the signings of David Robertson and Melky Cabrera that forced them to forfeit their picks in rounds 2 and 3.
Read MoreWhite Sox draft Carson Fullmer with No. 8 pick
/Personally, my optimism for this pick has been skyrocketing ever since I realized this is not the 35-year-old quarterback with multiple ACL tears.
Read MoreWhite Sox Draft Ruminations
/There is a certain futility to speculating about the MLB draft. For one thing, baseball prospects, unlike those in the NBA or NFL, for example, are so many years away from ever making it to MLB - if they ever do at all. Then you have to factor in for years - like this one - where there isn't a clear cut Top 2 or Top 3 or Top 4 and chaos reigns. As opposed to say, last year, where there was a pretty clear Top 3 and the only question was their sequence. Then you have to take into account the different valuations that different organizations place on tools, present baseball skill, cost, positions of need, etc. etc. And, what's more, it's not like teams necessarily have anything to gain from telegraphing the players they're interested in - and you could argue it is quite the opposite. Still, while forecasting specific players may be quixotic, there are still inferences you can draw from a team's general draft philosophy.
Read More2015 MLB Draft: How Much Can The White Sox Spend?
/When the San Diego Padres agreed to terms with James Shields earlier this week, the 2015 MLB Draft order was finalized — finally.
Read MoreDraft Signing Update
/The MLB Draft and its new bonus pool restrictions are very relatable for the non-super rich baseball team-owning class. There is the initial thrill of buying something exorbitant and fancy, and days and weeks afterward spent trying to figure out how the hell to pay for it. What drastic cutbacks to other areas of life can be made to accommodate this indulgence?
Super rich baseball team owners ultimately don’t have to sacrifice anything real, and should thus be as aggressive as possible, but it’s still fun to watch them contort themselves. But so far into the draft signing period, the Sox aren’t doing anything contorting besides what they’re doing to expectations.
Read MoreSecond day draft recap/yakfest
/James: After the second round, we're both blowing past anyone who might have snagged a place on a top-100 draft prospect list, but also drifting away from players with tools that have much more than a puncher's chance of flashing above-average. The list of current White Sox who were drafted after the second round is this: Tyler Flowers, Adam Eaton, Adrian Nieto, Javy Guerra, Matt Lindstrom, Zach Putnam, Scott Carroll, Daniel Webb, Scott Downs, Nate Jones.
There are plenty of these dudes, but it’s not exactly a haven for stars. Anyways...
Read MoreMy Rodon Reaction
/Like many drafts, the 2014 MLB draft wound up with a huge amount of conversation based on extremely limited information. The general public only gets tiny snippets of meaningful knowledge about a lot of these players. Then you factor in the rumors - many of which are deliberately skewed by front offices floating misinformation in order to disguise their true strategy. And even if we did know what the front offices did, just take a look at Top 100 prospect lists or drafts from 5-10 years ago and you'll see how accurate that information turns out to be. After weeks and then months of prognostication and mock drafts, people had generally deduced what would happen, and then began talking themselves out of it.
Read MoreWhite Sox pick RHP Spencer Adams in the second round
/Jacob Gatewood was snagged by the Milwaukee Brewers at No. 41, taking away from the MLB Draft broadcast of its most high-profile example of a highly-touted high school talent sliding past his first-round draft projections. The poor guy was just sitting there on the floor for four hours. But he wasn't the only one.
Read MoreRodon roundtable
/Members of The Catbird Seat staff have been floating in and out of a google doc all night sharing their thoughts on the White Sox draft pick, Most of it is unusable.
Read MoreSay Hello to Carlos Rodon, Your Newest White Sox Prospect
/There you have it.
After months of speculation, the White Sox have their next top prospect, someone they hope will be able to join the big league rotation within the next year or two in North Carolina State left-hander Carlos Rodon.
Read More2014 MLB Draft Preview: One Final Look
/The 2014 MLB Draft is finally upon us, and later tonight we'll finally know who the White Sox will be adding with arguably the team's most important draft selection in more than 20 years.
Read MoreLatest Draft Rumblings: Best Player Available?
/Believe it or not, there's more to be discussed regarding the upcoming MLB Draft as we wind down to one day until the White Sox make their selection at No. 3 overall.
Read MoreThe Catbird Speaks 5.30.14 - "How far along in the Lewinsky scandal were we when Robin broke his leg?"
/The White Sox are semi-streaking, over .500 and within a good weekend of a playoff spot.
Naturally, Collin Whitchurch, Nick Schaefer and James Fegan got together to discuss their issues with Robin Ventura's decision-making, whether or not the Sox are staying true to their rebuilding mission, what the heck Hector Noesi is doing, what stud pitcher the Sox should take with their stud draft pick, and...the All-Star Game?
The quote in the title is paraphrased, but rest assured, we cover the topic.
Read MoreThe Draft Picture Solidifies A Bit
/It's been odd watching the White Sox have plenty of runs and scramble around for pitching this year. It brings me back to the 90s and early 2000s, but it is an inversion of the model that we have become used to seeing in the Obama Administration. With the presence of Jose Abreu and Adam Eaton -- and hopefully eventually Avisail Garcia and Matt Davidson -- it appears that the organizational need pendulum has swung away from offense and back toward pitching. And although this may change, it appears that a clear Top Three has emerged for the upcoming MLB draft and the White Sox are fortunate enough to have one of those three selections.
Read MoreWhite Sox Draft Update
/In June, with the #3 selection the White Sox will have the highest first round draft pick they have had since taking Harold Baines #1 overall in 1977. They've fared pretty well with their three Top 5 selections since then, grabbing guys like Jack McDowell and Alex Fernandez - although taking Kurt Brown ahead of Barry Bonds was probably ill-advised. So, seeing as they have had all of four Top 5 picks since the Carter administration, this is a bit of a special occasion.
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